Bernard Laporte, the new president of the FFR, said: “We were able to see from the reading of the commitments received that the French candidacy has met with wide support among the elected representatives of the major French cities and metropolises and it is for us an essential support in the bid file.”

Bid director Claude Atcher, a former France international, has previously claimed that with three million tickets to sell, the FFR could make €300 million ($320 million) in ticket revenues and a profit of around €200 million from hosting the tournament.

Atcher has also cited a recent report on the Uefa 2016 European Championships in France, which generated an economic impact of €1.22 billion for the host country, noting: "In 2007 [Rugby World Cup], we had more than €500 million of economic spin-offs for France. By 2015, England approached one billion and the economic benefits of Euro 2016 exceeded €1 billion. The state and especially the cities are fully aware of this. They are aware of the impact on the use of hotels, restaurants and tourism."

A technical review group from World Rugby, the sport’s international governing body, will visit France to examine its bid on 30 and 31 March, following its visit to Ireland on 21 and 22 March.

This week, World Rugby undertook its first
host candidate visit in South Africa.

All three countries must submit their bid
documents to World Rugby by 1 June, with the host country to be announced on 15
November.